On April 20, according to "Business Insider",Ford CEO Jim Farley said there was a reason why he test drove the Xiaomi SU7 instead of a Tesla car.In the podcast "Quick Response" broadcast last Friday, the host asked Farley why he did not choose Tesla when he chose to test drive Xiaomi SU7 in 2024 to evaluate the strength of competitors.

Farley

Farley responded that to beat Chinese rivals in the auto industry, he doesn't necessarily have to focus on Tesla.

"I'm not targeting Tesla, they've been doing a great job, but they really don't have a newer model," Farley said.

He said Chinese car brands like BYD are "the best in the industry" when taking into account costs, supply chains and manufacturing processes.

"Now, if we are smart enough, we should learn from BYD's cost competitiveness and use this platform to compete in the market segments where we best understand customer needs," Farley said. "The next wave of electric vehicle customers in the United States want pickup trucks, SUVs and various vehicle styles, but they want to buy them for $30,000, not $50,000 like the first wave of customers. They want affordable cars."

Farley said that China's progress in the automotive field is both awe-inspiring and worthy of respect.This is a point he has made many times over the past few years.

In 2024, Farley said in a podcast interview that he had been driving Xiaomi SU7 for six months and was reluctant to give it up. Earlier this April, he said on the "Fox & Friends" program that the entry of Chinese cars into the United States would have a "devastating blow" to the U.S. manufacturing industry. He called manufacturing the "heart and soul" of the United States.

Farley's comments come as Ford shifts away from producing the all-electric F-150 Lightning pickup truck to developing smaller, more affordable and hybrid models. Ford said in December that this strategic shift would cost the company about $19.5 billion.

Currently, Ford's cheapest hybrid model is its Maverick XL pickup truck, which starts at about $28,000. Tesla’s cheapest model is the Model 3, which starts at $36,990.

As of press time, Tesla has not commented on this.